Rekindling a Forgotten Smile
by Ethelra
Summary: Love is something he doesn't have time for and she doesn't believe in. Saya, Tezuka's childhood best friend, reappears in Seigaku High School without any memory of him and becomes Seigaku tennis club's new manager. Their rekindled friendship will turn into something that they fear and try to resist. TezukaxOC
1. Unexpected Reunions

This story takes place in Seishun Gakuen High School, three years after Seigaku team won the National Tournament. Tezuka does not leave Germany and stays in Seigaku along with all the other regulars. Similar to the middle school tennis tournaments, the high school section also has Prefectural, District, and National tournaments.

**Note:** Please do also read Chapter Two since it introduces all the Seigaku regulars and provides a lot more information about the story plot. Chapter One somehow serves as a prologue. Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter One - Unexpected Reunions**

"_Without even realising it, I'd fallen in love."_

A chuckle slipped from Saya's lips as she read the sentence from the novel. _Love is wonderful!_ _Oh, the magic of love! Once you're in love, there's no way out! _The words she had often heard from her bubbly friends in Kyoto echoed in her mind once again. As earnest as she was, she was never keen about relationships. She never believed in love, no, and often wondered why her friends were so optimistic about it. To Saya, love was simply a fleeting feeling of happiness that would in the end deceive, confuse, and hurt its victims, to which her mother and father fell prey. She had made the message clear to everyone who knew her in middle school, and thus had been given the nickname, 'White Rose': beautiful, innocent, but whose thorns made it unapproachable. However, little did her friends know that she secretly enjoyed spending time reading romantic novels, immersing herself in fantasies, where brutal reality would not intervene and the couples, having gone through several obstacles, would live happily ever after.

"_We have arrived at Tokyo Station._"

Saya raised her head and glanced at the widening gap between the sliding doors. Her languid eyes drifted back to the words on the page as she exited the train. As she did so, a boy, whose age was the same as hers, walked pass her and stepped into the train, his eyes concentrated on the novel he was reading.

With neither even realising it, Saya and Tezuka crossed paths on the last day of March.

* * *

_"Kunimitsu, I'm... I'm moving to Kyoto tomorrow."_

_Two 12-year-old children ensconced themselves on their favourite spot in the riverside of a Tokyo neighbourhood. _

_"You're not waiting until we graduate from Seishun Elementary?" Although Tezuka's tone was flat, Saya could still sense his shock. _

_She pulled her lips into a thin line, her dark blue eyes locked on the river below her. "Un", said Saya, "The company papa is working for promoted him and assigned him to work in Kyoto. It's an important job so he wants us to move to Kyoto as soon as possible. He told me that we will stay in Kyoto for at least several years."_

_"I see...", muttered Tezuka. The two words, as simple as they might have seemed, were enough to convey his message to Saya. She was one of the few people who could understand his messages behind his laconic replies and was the only one who could reveal the tenderness hidden behind his stoic countenance, although she was oblivious to the latter fact. This was why they thought of each other as close friends in Seishun Elementary. As much as he did not want her to leave, he had to respect her parents' decision and understood that there was nothing they could do to change her parents' mind. _

_A small drop of tear escaped from Saya's eye, slid down her chubby cheek, and fell onto her white dress. Tezuka glanced at the small wet spot formed on her dress in silence; he knew she would not have wanted him to point it out. When it came to concealing weaknesses, the two children were stubborn, scratch that, __**very**__ stubborn. The male was a potential leader, and the female was a potential confidante. For this reason, neither of them could afford exposing their weak sides to people, not even to their close ones. _

_"But I'll be back before you know it!" Saya's mouth twisted into a grin, "Because who else would have the patience to learn how to read your unique language? It's a difficult language for beginners."_

"_But I don't have my own language. It's just that people-"_

_Saya crossed her arms, a slight smirk curving its way across her lips._

_"Aa", Tezuka returned a smile with slight amusement, "I guess you're right."_

_Saya put her left hand out and raised her pinky, "It's a promise."_

_He quirked his brow, "Aren't we a bit too old for this?"_

_"Mattaku, we're still in elementary school!" Without his permission, she laced her pinky with his. She could not help herself but grin as she watched him frown in embarrassment._

_"There's another reason why I must come back to see you again."_

_"Another reason?" The little boy's eyes were glazed with curiosity._

_"I still haven't repaid you for teaching me how to play tennis and showing me how fun it is."_

_"You don't need to, Saya", said Tezuka, "Because I also learned a lot from you."_

_"You did?" The girl's eyes blinked in confusion, "What did I teach you?"_

_"... Things." She noticed Tezuka's cheeks were tinted with a little blush. _

_Saya let out a little sigh and stood up. With arms stretched in the air, she gazed at the river again, concentrating on the sparkles of sunlight reflected on the river's tranquil surface. Indeed, the river reminded her of Tezuka, especially the way he played tennis: calm yet strong. Both would continue flowing regardless of the circumstances,__ never allowing themselves to become stagnant, _and would shine when provoked.

_"Ne, Kunimitsu."_

_"Hm?"_

_A gentle smile graced her pale countenance as she turned around to face Tezuka again. Unfortunately for him, her smile was covered by her long locks light ash brown hair, waving subtly across her face as the wind blew. _

_"Tennis is fun, isn't?"_

* * *

Tezuka slowly opened and fluttered his golden eyes. He rested his backhand on his forehead, letting out a heavy sigh.

"A dream, huh", he mumbled.

An overwhelming sense of nostalgia washed over him. He wondered how many years had it been since he last had this dream. He thought he had long forgotten the feeling he had whenever he was with Saya. Sadly, Tezuka did not know what that feeling was. Six years flew by since his childhood friend had left. He reminisced their frequent exchange of letters after she had left Tokyo. Never did he forget how enjoying it was to read her letters; it was like reading her diary, with each entry as a puzzle piece that Tezuka would fit to gain a clearer picture of her life in Kyoto. Since then he had started keeping a journal, of which up till this day he still kept as a daily routine. When she had suddenly stopped replying, which was five years ago, the confused Tezuka had continuously made attempts to contact her, although in vain. He had thus given up and placed his priorities on his academics and the tennis club.

Sliding his glasses onto his face, Tezuka began to prepare himself for his first day of school of his last year in Seishun Gakuen High School. This would be the last year he could compete as a Seigaku regular along with all his teammates except for Echizen, who had returned to America after his first year in Seishun Gakuen Middle School. Tezuka had decided not to accept the invitation to train and become a professional player in Germany because he had felt it was his responsibility to continue and be Seigaku's pillar of support, and yes, even in high school. After all, he had been born to lead.

Tezuka's grandfather sauntered into the hallway, where he spotted his grandson tying his sports shoes' laces, "Already leaving, Kunimitsu? It's still rather early."

"Aa, I want to do some training in the school tennis court before school starts."

His grandfather laughed, _thinking ahead like a leader, eh, Kunimitsu. _

"That's my grandson. Go and lead Seigaku to victory once again!"

"Hai, I'll do my best."

* * *

It was early April; the cherry blossoms were in full bloom in Seishun Gakuen High School, awaiting incoming first years to gaze upon their beauty. Tezuka was the one of the first spectators, strolling along the pathway that lead to the school's tennis courts. A boy in dark green hair had been awaiting his arrival; he was leaning against a cherry blossom tree, continuously hitting a tennis ball with his red racket. With his signature smirk on his face, he then approached Tezuka, "Cheers, Tezuka-buchou. You're still the buchou, aren't you?"

"Aa. Glad to have you back, Echizen." Of course, Tezuka was not very surprised by Echizen's sudden appearance in Seishun Gakuen High School; he trusted this little guy and believed he would someday return to support the team.

Echizen slung his racket over his shoulder, "I'm back to take your role and become Seigaku's pillar of support."

Tezuka sensed the boy's determination burning in his dark yellow eyes.

"Saa, buchou, let's have a quick match. I've been waiting for you for the past hour."

Curious about how much he had improved since the last time he had seen him three years ago, Tezuka agreed to his request, "One game only."

As the two headed to the tennis locker room, Tezuka could not help himself but realise Echizen was at school _before _it had even started, "By the way, it's quite rare of you to be at school this early, Echizen."

Echizen turned his head away from Tezuka, an annoyed look on his face. Che. He _could _be early if he wanted to, it was just there had never been reasons for him to be, and so he had always arrived at the last minute to tournaments back in middle school. He could not say that to buchou though, so instead he made up an excuse, "I arrived from America yesterday and couldn't sleep last night due to jet lag."

The two changed their uniforms, entered an empty tennis court, and placed their tennis racket bag on their respective benches. "Buchou, I learned quite a lot of techniques in America." He grinned confidently as he walked to his side of the court, "Don't let your guard down." He had _always_ wanted to use his buchou's favourite line.

Echizen bent his back slightly and bounced the ball constantly with his right hand. Tezuka gripped his racked tightly with both hands, anticipating Echizen's serve.

"Saa, ikimasu!" Echizen threw the ball high up into the air and performed a twist serve. It was not the same one Tezuka had seen three years ago; Echizen developed it by adding more spin and power to the ball. The ball crashed onto the floor with a terrific thud and hit Tezuka's racket. The shivering in his left arm clearly showed that the ball's power was far too great for him to handle; he lost his grip as the ball knocked his racket, flew over the court fence, and landed into the area where the cherry blossom trees were located.

Tezuka observed the dent on the floor that Echizen's serve had created.

"Your power has increased", commented Tezuka as he picked up his white racket, "I'll go retrieve the ball."

Echizen smirked, lowering his hat, "Mada mada dane."

* * *

At the sight of a yellow ball flying in the air, a girl in Seigaku uniform sauntered towards the cherry blossom tree where she predicted the ball would land. She then extended her slender arm up to reach for the ball, which was sitting between several branches. She tipped her toes, one leg standing wobbly on the ground and the other hovering in the air. Just as she managed to grab hold of one of the branches the ball was sitting on, it broke, causing her to lose her balance and stumble backwards.

"Itai..." The girl's eyes twitched. This was not how she had intended her first day of school to be. Why had the tennis ball caught her attention, anyway? She did not know; it was not like she could play tennis anymore, but her body had just acted on impulse. She stretched her arm out to pick up the yellow ball that had landed on the ground, wondering who could have hit the ball that hardly and caused it to land outside the tennis court. _It must be a muscular and tall boy. But that ball flew out of **nowhere**. A monstrous player, perhaps? Hmm... _As she began imagining this mysterious person, she heard footsteps coming behind her. Curious, she turned around and found herself facing a stunned golden-haired boy. A light breeze rippled through the air, causing sakura petals to dance around the two.

Tezuka immediately saw an uncanny resemblance between this girl and Saya. Like Saya, she had long light ash brown hair with a side fringe and wavy ends that stopped just above her waist; her flawless pale skin matched pleasantly with her pair of dark blue eyes. Nevertheless, this girl's features were much more refined compared to those of the 12-year-old Saya he recalled.

With a slight gape in his mouth, he stared at her in awe.

"Ano... Is this ball yours?" Without Tezuka realising it, the girl had walked towards him, placing out her hand that was holding the tennis ball.

"Ha... Hai." He retrieved the ball from her hand, "I don't think I've seen your face at school before. Are you a first year student?"

The girl had never heard such a sonorous voice before, but somehow his voice sounded as though he was... surprised. "No, I'm a third year transfer student from Kyoto. I received special permission from the principal to study my last year in high school here."

_Kyoto? No, this cannot be_.

"May I ask your name?"

"Aa, sorry for not introducing myself! My name is Ito, Ito Saya." Saya greeted him with a polite bow.

_Ito Saya. Masaka, so it's... It's really you._ Tezuka let out a faint murmur, "You're back."

"Hai?"

"My name is Tezuka Kunimitsu." Surely Saya would remember her childhood friend's name.

"Tezuka-san, pleased to meet you!"

…

This did not make any sense to Tezuka. She was treating him as though they were meeting for the _first_ time. The only logical conclusion to this was that Saya had lost her memory of Tezuka. But how? What had happened in Kyoto?

"Tezuka-san?"

"Aa, I apologise." Tezuka regained his stoic composure, "It's a pleasure to meet you too."

Saya's thin pink lips curved into a tender grin. Ah, it was the same grin that Tezuka had been used to seeing six years ago; the same grin that would never fail to make him feel in ease.

"Oh!" Saya suddenly exclaimed, "I got distracted by the ball that I forgot about the meeting with sensei. Dewa, I shall excuse myself..." She bowed and walked to the left.

"The school is that way." Tezuka pointed to the opposite direction in which Saya was walking.

"A-Arigatou." She blushed in slight embarrassment.

_She really hasn't changed. Her sense of direction is still the same,_ Tezuka amusingly thought.

Saya turned around to face him once more after she had walked a few steps in the direction at which Tezuka pointed.

"Ano... Tezuka-san, you play tennis, don't you?"

"Aa."

Saya tilted her head to one side, offering a gentle smile that Tezuka had failed to see six years ago, "Tennis is fun, isn't?"

* * *

**Author's Note**

Phew, I've finally finished revising this chapter! *taps back*

Thank you so much for reading this chapter and I hope you enjoyed it! I'll try my best to stick to the original characters' personalities as close as possible. Also, I refer my OCs with their given names rather than their surnames, although this is not the case for all the characters in this anime.

Please do leave a review because I'd like know what you all think; I'll **greatly** appreciate it!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own "The Prince of Tennis" and any of the characters, except for the OCs.


	2. The Two Transfers

**Chapter 2 - The Two Transfers**

A giggly throng of girls gathered outside classroom 3-A just to take a glimpse at the captain of Seigaku High School's tennis team. The whole school had been raving about the captain since the first day he had entered the school. Everyone, even first years and new teachers, knew who Tezuka Kunimitsu was. Ah, yes, he was the one who lead the middle school team to championship in the National Tournament and was invited to travel to Germany to become a professional. Oh, and he unsurprisingly happened to be a model student, ranking first in the whole year and was president of the student council. The list goes on. Male students looked up on him with envy and respect, while girls, well, would go insane at the sight of him despite the fact that he _never_ smiled. His handsome facial features must have compensated for his cool demeanor. Although everyone knew that Tezuka had no interest and could not afford to invest his time in relationships. Girls did not, however, succumb to despair and had formed a fanclub dedicated to this seemingly perfect 17-year-old student.

Oblivious to the raucous crowd outside his classroom, Tezuka gazed out the window, his elbow over the desk and palm under his chin, musing over what had happened this early morning. Indeed, he was impressed by Echizen's drastic improvement, but he had won the game feasibly, leaving the boy out of breath. Echizen had sworn to himself that he would someday defeat his buchou. Tezuka was still bothered by his unexpected encounter with Saya; there were so mysteries around this girl that he wanted to unravel: Why had she stopped replying to his letters? Why did she not remember him? Why did she suddenly appear in Seishun Gakuen High School?

"Tezuka... Tezuka!"

Tezuka snapped out of his thoughts and turned to the boy with sleek dark hair, "Oishi."

"What's wrong, Tezuka? I've been calling your name several times without any response. Is something bothering you?" A worried expression plastered Oishi's face as he slung his bag off his shoulder and took his seat beside Tezuka. Despite Tezuka's emotionless countenance, Oishi could always tell when something was wrong with him. After all, he was the mother of Seigaku; he knew all the regulars well and cared for them as though they were his children. Besides, he had been friends with Tezuka since middle school, so he had already got used to his poker face.

"Nothing in particular. You don't have to worry."

"If you say so..." Oishi understood that whenever Tezuka said he did not to have to worry about it meant he was right and should drop the subject because Tezuka could handle the problem himself. Oishi sighed. Tezuka was _such_ a stubborn child.

"Anyway, this is really our last year in Seigaku and our last chance to compete as Seigaku regulars. We must do our best!" Oishi clenched his hands into a fist and smiled determinedly.

"Aa. We must not let our guard down."

"It would be great if Echizen were here." Oishi let out another sigh, "Together we can beat against the odds and regain our championship that we claimed in the National Tournament three years ago."

Unfortunately for Seigaku, Rikkaidai had been the winner of the National High School Tournament for the past two years, with Seigaku, Hyotei, and Shitenhougi as the runner-ups. Although Tezuka, Fuji, Oishi, Kikumaru, Inui, and Kawamura had won most of the matches in the tournaments, their senpais had not been strong enough to compete against the powerful players of rival schools. Since Tezuka had not been the team's buchou until last fall, which was after the National Tournament, Momoshiro and Kaidoh had not been allowed to participate in last year's tournaments as first years.

"Speaking of Echizen, I met him at school early this morning."

"E-Eh? Really? But I thought he's still in America!" Oishi blinked in surprise.

"He came back and joined Seishun Gakuen High School this year."

"Th-That's great!" exclaimed the black haired boy, "That means we're finally reunited. Ah, how long I've been waiting for this moment to come!"

"That is if Echizen wins enough matches in the upcoming monthly ranking tournament to become a regular."

"But you believe in him, don't you?" Oishi's smile widened. He knew how much faith his captain had in this boy.

"Hoi, hoi~ Did I hear it correctly? O-Chibi is back?" said Kikumaru as he hopped towards Oishi and clung to him with his arms.

Tezuka nodded. Kikumaru immediately beamed and wrapped his partner's neck more tightly, his cheeks pressed firmly against the back of the poor boy's head as he moved back and forth. "Oishi! I can't believe it! O-Chibi is back! O-Chibi is back!"

"Eiji... I... ca-can't... bre-breathe..."

"Ah! Gomen ne." Kikumaru released his arms from Oishi's neck, his puppy eyes begged for forgiveness. No one could resist Kikumaru's puppy eyes, not even his golden partner.

"Echizen is back? This is wonderful news, ne?" said Fuji as he sauntered to his three friends.

"Really? Yoshi, I must treat him some sushi then. I bet he hasn't eaten sushi for a while!" Kawamura invited himself to the talk.

"The probability that Echizen has grown less than 3 cm since the last time we saw him is 93%", said Inui as he adjusted his glasses.

"When did yo-Were you guys eavesdropping our conversation?!" Oishi breathed out a sigh. He never really understood how the captain could tolerate this boisterous group, given his strict personality.

"By the way, Tezuka", said Oishi, "Why were you and Echizen at school early this morning? What were you guys doing?"

"Echizen wanted to have a match with me."

Fuji smiled, his hand curled around his chin, "As expected from Echizen."

The school bell suddenly rang, interrupting their conversation.

"Sensei will be in the classroom any minute now", said Fuji, smiling as usual. As a sadist, he knew this would disconcert his classmate.

"Shimatta!" exclaimed Eiji, eyes widened and mouth opened,"I don't want to be late on my first day! Come on, Fuji! Let's go!" _Got him._

Kikumaru ran out of the classroom, pulling Fuji along as the latter waved goodbye to his dear friends.

"Soro soro, we should make our leave now", said Inui, "See you after school." Both Inui and Kawamura took their leave.

_Some things never change, now do they?_ Oishi chuckled to himself.

* * *

The long-anticipated lunchtime finally arrived. It had been a tortuous morning for students and teachers alike with an entrance ceremony and endless introductions. Tezuka decided to pay a visit to the teachers' office to discuss with Ryusaki-sensei matters regarding the tennis club. Although Ryuzaki-sensei had been teaching in Seishun Gakuen Middle School for many years, she had transferred to the high school division a year ago. She had realised that she had been stuck in the middle school for too many years. Well, she was right. She had taught both Nanjiro Echizen _and_ his son, Ryoma Echizen, in the same school. Even her granddaughter had just graduated from middle school! No wonder she had wanted change.

"I heard that Echizen is back", said Ryuzaki-sensei as she piled up the papers she had been going through on her desk.

"Hai. I had a match with him before school had started. He has gotten far stronger compared to three years ago."

"The same applies to you." The old woman smiled, "By the way, I have an announcement to make to the tennis club members. But I'd like to tell you first since you're the captain."

"Hai."

"I recruited a manager. It's about time our club has a manager. She'll take care of all the side work that you've been responsible for and keep tabs on all members. Ah, she'll also help me out with the paperwork and keep the team spirit up."

Tezuka blinked once, in surprise of his coach's announcement, "But sensei, we've never had a manager and have been doing fine. This new manager may be a distraction for the team. Maybe we should reconsid-"

"Tezuka", Ryuzaki-sensei, with her arms crossed, looked at her student displeasingly, "You have to consider your own situation. You are graduating this year and both of us know that you have much more responsibilities to take care of. You, along with the majority of the Seigaku regulars, have university entrance exams to take at the end of this year. What's wrong with a manager who could alleviate your workload? I understand that you don't like to share your burdens with others, but I believe you can really benefit from this manager's presence."

"If you say so, sensei." Tezuka's expression remained unchanged, "But I hope she won't cause any trouble for the team."

Ryuzaki-sensei laughed as she leaned against her chair. She found it amusing that Tezuka did not like the idea of having a female in the club. _She_ was a female. But then again, age difference, age difference. "Don't worry, she won't. I have complete faith in this girl. When I was talking to her this morning I could sense that she has a great passion for tennis and has a broad knowledge of it. It's a shame that she can't play tennis anymore, not with her injured arms."

"Injured arms?"

"Aa. She encountered an accident five years ago but she couldn't recall what it was. It seems like her parents want this accident to remain as a mystery."

"Is that so..."

"Anyway, aren't you curious about the new manager?" A sly smile overtook her face.

"I'll get to know her once I see her this afternoon in the tennis club", said Tezuka, "Jya, I shall excuse myself now." He bowed and stepped towards the door.

"Tezuka."

At the sound of his name, he turned around, his brows tweaked ever so slightly as he wondered what news had he not heard yet. Indeed, he had had enough of surprises today. First was Echizen's arrival, then came Saya's reappearance, and now a manager recruitment for the tennis club of which he thought he had been taking very good care.

"It seems like something is bothering you, and it has nothing to do with Echizen or the tennis club, am I correct?"

Nothing could escape from Ryusaki-sensei's sharp eyes. Nevertheless, Tezuka refused to answer her question, "I shall take my leave now, Ryuzaki-sensei."

As he slid the door closed; the worried coach let out a deep sigh, "This boy never shares his problems, does he?"

* * *

The loud ring of a school bell resonated through the hallways, signalling the end of school. First year students hurriedly packed their belongings and rushed out of their classrooms to search for clubs to join. The tennis club garnered the most attention, since it was the only sport club that went to the Nationals for three consecutive years. Outside the tennis locker room, the pathway that led to the tennis courts was flooded with energetic first year boys who aspired to become part of the Seigaku tennis team. The majority thought that becoming a regular was an easy path to popularity. Girls from all years, too, feverishly gathered around the tennis courts just to see the Seigaku regulars who were famous for only only their skills, but also their amazingly good-looks.

"Dou? How's the new student registration doing?"said Kawamura as he walked into the tennis court where Inui was in.

"We got roughly 2.5 times as many applicants as last year." Inui examined the registration paper he was holding.

"But most of them don't look like they have the backbone for the training that we have to go through", Kaidoh glared at the crowd of first years as he entered the court. The poor little boys shrank in fear. "I'm sure most of them will quit after a month."

"Yo! Look who's back!" Momoshiro walked into the court along with Echizen, one arm around the shorty's shoulder and the other arm waving in the air to draw attention. "Aitsu, he never tells us when he's coming back!" He clenched his wavering hand into a fist to knuckle Echizen's head, messing up his dark green hair.

"Momo-senpai, that hurts", said Echizen with an annoyed look, though secretly he had missed Momoshiro's teasing. Too bad he was still a few feet shorter than Momoshiro. If he were a little taller, he could have been able to dishevel his sempai's spiky hair. The thought of it made Echizen smirk. He must drink more milk.

"O-CHIBI!" Kikumaru jumped over the tennis net and, like Momoshiro, wrapped his arms over Echizen's neck, his hand messing Echizen's hair, "Looks like you've grown a bit! But you're still the shortest one among us, nya~"

"Momo-senpai and Eiji-senpai, you guys haven't changed one bit." Echizen sighed in irritation. This made the two lively senpais to smile broadly, their white teeth glinting at the boy whom they had always enjoyed teasing.

"By the way, have you guys heard about the two new transfer students in our year?" said Kikumaru, changing the topic.

Inui pushed up his glasses, "Yes, I have. I gathered some good data of the two girls." The data-player smirked and cleared his throat, "The first one is named Ito Saya, age 17, birthday is on December 1st. She recently moved from Kyoto. Her parents are divorced; she's living with her mother. Her hobbies are reading, trave-"

"That's not the point, Inui!" intruded Eiji , "The main point is they're both really, really pretty! I've never seen any girl as pretty as them in real life!"

"Un, un. News about the two girls has spread to my year too." Momoshiro nodded in agreement, "My classmates who saw them in the hallway have been talking about them all day, saying how unrealistically pretty they were in very different ways. Gah, I want to meet them too! But... Inui-sempai, where did you get all this information from? And why did you get them in the first place?"

Silence engulfed the tennis court.

"Oh, I get it! You _like_ the first girl." Eiji pointed at Inui, a smirk formed on his lips, "That's why you digged into her background!"

Shocked by Eiji's outrageous accusation, Inui shook his head and hands vigorously, sweat formed on his palms and forehead. "O-Of course not! It-It's just rather rare for our school to accept third year transfers and so..." Arms over each other's shoulder, Eiji and Momoshiro approached Inui, a smug expression drawn on both faces. "I-I couldn't help myself but gather data of her. But I also have data of the second girl! If you would just let me-"

"Tell us more about the first girl, Inui." A silky voice slid in, followed by a squeal of fangirls emanated from outside the court. "I'm also curious about the two transfer students, especially the one you were talking about. I'm sure all of us are."

Inui sighed in relief as Eiji and Momoshiro turned their heads to Fuji, brows lowered to show their annoyance. The two had almost got Inui, but then Fuji decided to intrude and pull the fun away.

"A-Aa." Inui adjusted his glasses, regaining his composure, "Well, she was already immensely popular in her middle school in Kyoto, especially with boys. But she never dated anyone and gained a nickname of 'White Rose.'"

"'White Rose', eh." Fuji pondered over the interesting nickname, a usual smile on his face, "Beautiful, innocent, and unapproachable. What an appropriate name."

"Che, so what", Standing against the fence and his hands in his black pants' pockets, Kaidoh hissed, "You guys always talk about such trivial matters."

"Trivial? Our lives aren't just about tennis and training like yours, Viper." Momoshiro smirked at his eternal rival.

"Teme-, what did you say...?" said Kaidoh, his enraged eyes scowling at his prey, "Shh..."

"Want to fight?"

"Bring it on."

Momoshiro and Kaidoh glared at each other intensely, brows furrowed and their faces only a few centimetres away from each other. Lightning flashed between the two rivals' eyes.

Oishi, with a sigh, entered the court and separated the two furious boys. He had lost count of the number of sighs he let out due to the troubles into which his teammates often get.

"Oy, you guys, stop fighting!" Oishi yelled like a mother, "You all should get changed as soon as possible. Tezuka is almost done with the student council meeting and will be here anytime soon."

In unison, Momoshiro and Kaidoh snarled, turned their heads away, and walked in opposite directions. Everyone knew Tezuka did not condone quarrels in the court. Aside from Fuji, Tezuka was the scariest person in the term if provoked. The two certainly would not want to see their buchou furious, he already looked a tad bit cross with his usual cold demeanor, thank you very much.

* * *

The large squeal, which was emanated from outside the court, suddenly intensified, causing the members to turn their heads to the direction where the girls were standing.

"_Kyaaaa! Tezuka-kun! Please do your best!"_

"_Tezuka-sama is the best!"_

"_Ah! Tezuka-sama is so cool!"_

Ignoring the squealing fangirls, Tezuka entered tennis court along with Ryuzaki-sensei. His potent presence dominated the court; all members looked up on him in silence.

"Bu-Buchou!"

Several boys covered their ears to block the girls' amplifying screams. Ryuzaki-sensei rolled her eyes, the high school girls were _way_ worse than the middle school ones. She thought older girls would act more mature. How wrong she was. Too bad there was nothing she could do about it. Since the girls were not inside the tennis courts, neither she nor Tezuka had the right to ask them to leave.

"Che~ I don't understand why Tezuka always gets the loudest cheers." Kikumaru sulked, "He never smiles or changes his expression." He pulled his eyes with his fingers to imitate Tezuka's serious face.

Fuji giggled at Kikumaru's poor attempt, "Hora, Tezuka doesn't look like that, now does he?"

Ryuzaki-sensei cleared her throat and let out a loud cough. The girls sensed her deep annoyance and quieted down.

"Welcome, incoming first years and welcome back, second and third years. We have yet another tough year to face. Everyone should do their best!"

"Hai, coach!" All members said in unison.

"Jya, before Tezuka gives out orders for today's training, I have an announcement to make."

Murmuring began to seep through the crowd. Ryusaki-sensei coughed again, causing the crowd to lapse into silence.

"We have a new manager for the tennis club."

Murmuring swept in again as the members began chattering about the new manager.

"_Maji de (Seriously)?"_

"_Shinjirarenai (I cannot believe it)!"_

"_Hontou ni (Really)?"_

"Ryuzaki-sensei! Is our new manager a female?" asked Momoshiro with a large grin on his face. No one was surprised that this question came out of Momoshiro's mouth. He made it clear that he had always wanted a girl in the team and certainly did not want to spent the rest of his high school years in a club that only consisted of guys.

"Aa. She should be here any mome-"

"Yes! Finally! A girl in our team!" Momoshiro and Eiji high-fived and hugged each other, jumping up and down, up and down."A girl! A girl! A GIRL!" They chimed gleefully.

"I wonder who she is." Fuji was smiling as usual.

"It must be someone that Ryuzaki-sensei has complete trust on", commented Inui, who then whispered to Kawamura's ear, "That means there's a 80% chance that this new manager will be as strict and serious as Tezuka is. We're screwed, Takashi."

"Another Tezuka in our team?!" shouted Kawamura. It was too late for desperate Inui to shush him. The members fell into silence again. Not only were they terrified at the thought of another buchou-like person in their team, but also dreaded to think how their buchou would react to Kawamura's statement. Make them run 10 laps? 20 laps? 50 laps?! They gulped and turned their heads to Tezuka, only to find him standing beside Ryusaki-sensei like a statue, arms crossed. They all sighed in relief.

Kaidoh was tired of his teammates making a fuss over a girl. He hissed and walked towards the court gate to get some fresh water. Before he stepped into the sea of fangirls, a light ash brown-haired girl had managed to weaved her through the crowd, and, unaware of what was ahead of her, bumped into the boy with a green bandana. The regulars stared at the two of them in silence, although they could not see the girl's face (Kaidoh's back was facing them), they already predicted what expression the girl would wear.

"Oh... no."

"Did she just-"

"Yes, I believe she did." Inui took his notebook out, ready to write down how Kaidoh would react to this.

However, contrary to the boys' expectation, Kaidoh did not seem to be vexed but rather just stood there, paralysed. Their ears must be deceiving them too because they heard Kaidoh saying, "... Y-You alright?"

A number of jaws dropped at the sight of this unbelievable scene, Momoshiro's and Eiji's ones the widest. To make the situation even more peculiar, the girl did not seem to shriek in fear and instead made an apologetic bow. No girl in history had ever been able to act that calmly when they met Kaidoh for the first time. Momoshiro's and Eiji's jaws dropped even wider.

The girl then walked to Ryusaki-sensei. "I'm sorry for being late!" She did another apologetic bow, "Sensei asked me to stay for a bit after school to go over the things I have to catch up on for being a transfer student."

That soft voice sounded strangely familiar to both Eiji and Fuji. And they swore they had seen her angelic face just a while ago. Now, where did they see her?

_Bling. _The lightbulb lit. Of course, their classroom.

"Y-you're Saya Ito! The transfer student in our class!" Kikumaru pointed at Saya in disbelief.

"H-hai."

The chattering noise filled the air once again. Everyone was mesmerized by her beauty. Behind the fence, the girls cast jealous glances at her. Inui scribbled down details of her facial features on his notebook, just in case anyone needed more information of her. Kawamura's jaw dropped. Eiji's index finger was still pointing at her. Momoshiro rubbed his eyes, dubious of what he was seeing. Oishi blinked twice. Fuji's clear blue eyes gazed at her in awe. Kaidoh remained in silence. Echizen stared at her blankly. And Tezuka? Well, his arms were still crossed. No one could tell that he was startled by Saya's presence, perhaps Oishi, Fuji, and Ryusaki-sensei were the only three exceptions.

"It seems like you don't have to introduce yourself to the tennis club members, Itou." Ryusaki-sensei smiled at Saya, then turned to the noisy crowd and clapped her hands to gain attention. "Hora, everyone. As you all already know, this girl is called Itou Saya and she'll be the tennis club's new manager. Please take good care of her!"

"Hai!"

"This is my lucky day!" exclaimed Momoshiro as he approached Saya, a huge grin curved on his lips. "Nice to meet you! My name's Momoshiro Takeshi, but you can just call me Momo!"

"Eh, Momo! That's not fair! You're making a move now!" Kikumaru pushed Momoshiro to the side so he could face Saya. "Hoi, hoi~ I'm Kikumaru Eiji! Remember me? I'm your classmate." Kikumaru pointed at himself, his mouth forming an even wider grin.

"I do", said Saya with a tender smile, "Nice to meet you again, Kikumaru-kun. I'll do my best for the team!"

The crowd gathered around Saya, with members pushing against each other to fight for the chance to introduce themselves.

"My calculations were wrong... But still..." Inui adjusted his glasses and continued scribbling in his notebook, an evil smirk stretched across his face. He had gathered some good data of Saya that he could use against the members in the near future.

Kaidoh got knocked out of the rowdy fray. He froze in a spot and mumbled to himself, "It's just a girl... It's just a girl... Shh..."

"Mattaku, I should have realised that she'd cause this disturbance", Ryuzaki-sensei sighed as she placed her hand across her wrinkled forehead.

Oishi let out yet another sigh. It had taken him a while to get used to the raucous team, and so he wondered whether Saya could handle the job. He walked to Tezuka, who was standing at a corner with his arms crossed as always. "It seems like the club will be very active this year."

"A-Aa." Tezuka was still surprised by Saya's presence in the club; yet another mystery emerged for him to solve. He did not know whether he should feel relieved or burdened by Saya's sudden return in his life.

"Tezuka, are you alright?" Oishi knew his friend would never be charmed by a girl's appearance, but somehow he felt buchou was acting a rather strangely after Saya's arrival.

Tezuka averted his thoughts of her and shouted, "Everyone should warm up now! When you're done, second years and third years will enter the courts! First years, prepare for ball fetching!"

"Hai!"

"That person..." Saya's dark green eyes turned to the deep voice. She saw a familiar golden-haired boy, in his regular uniform, standing at a distance. "Wasn't he the one I met this morning? So he's the buchou..." She could not help herself but feel sorry for the first years. She recalled witnessing a ball flying outside the tennis court this morning. If players here liked hitting balls that strongly, the first years would definitely have a hard time fetching balls _outside_ the courts everyday.

Saya walked to Tezuka and bowed slightly as a gesture of respect,"Nice to meet you again, Tezuka-buchou. I'll do my best for the team. If you need any help, please don't hesitate and ask me. After all, my job is to help the team in any way I can, ne", Yet another tender smile spread across her face. She was similar to Fuji in this sense, both were never tired of smiling. Although the former was not a sadist.

"Aa. Thanks in advance."

Despite the fact that Tezuka's stern look remained the same, Ryuzaki-sensei noticed Tezuka's eyes became tender when he talked to the new manager. "_Hm, it seems like I did choose the right girl after all."_

"A new manager, eh. This will be an interesting year", commented Fuji, "Right, Echizen?"

"Saa, who knows."

* * *

A yawn made its way out of Echizen's mouth as he walked along the pathway that led to the other tennis courts. This would be the last time he would arrive at school this early.

"Ne." A sugary voice rang out. The torpid boy blinked and turned his head to his left. A girl was leaning against the fence of an empty tennis court. Dark amber rendered both her eyes and hair. With her large eyes, small lips and nose, she could easily be recognised as a model in kawaii fashion magazines. And judging by the perfect curls at the ends of her mid-length hair, one could tell that she devoted a lot of time maintaining her looks. Most boys would be dazzled by her amazing charm. Nevertheless, Echizen was no ordinary boy and could not care less about how she looked.

"Who are you?"

"You don't know how I am?" A cute smile curled on her cherry lips. She finally met someone who did know know who she was.

"... No."

It seemed like this cute little boy did not fall for her supposedly alluring smile. Ah, the rumours were true then. The tennis club was the only club in Seishun Gakuen High School that had _very_ good-looking boys who were not interested in girls, let alone relationships. Such a peculiar school. It seemed that she had chosen the right school to transfer to. She thanked her parents for that.

"Hai, hai. I'm Suzuki Aiko. 3rd year. I'm just dropping by to say hello to the famous regulars that I've heard a lot about."

"If you're looking for the regulars, they're over in that court." Echizen pointed to the court surrounded by a herd of fangirls.

Aiko tilted her head to glance at the court. Wow, she never realised that they were this popular. She remembered looking a photo of all the regulars in a magazine a few months ago; the golden-haired boy had caught her attention. Now, if she recalled correctly, was not he the team's captain? What was his name again?

"Ne. What's the name of your buchou?"

"Tezuka Kunimitsu. Why?"

"Nothing. He's one of the most kakkoii members in the team, isn't he?" She gave him a cute wink.

Echizen paused. How would he know? He never cared how his teammates looked. Although, the girls screamed especially loudly whenever buchou entered the court. That might be an indication that the girls thought he was one of the coolest ones. Wait, why did he even bother thinking how to answer this question?

"E-ee. I guess so..."

"Thanks for the info! Jya ne!" She waved goodbye and left the tennis area.

Echizen stared at the back of the shrinking figure. _What a strange girl._

_Tezuka Kunimitsu, eh._ She would make him fall for her. If she succeeded, he would then become her 10th boyfriend. She never cared how people thought about her treatment of guys. She would first make her target fall in love with her; when she got tired of dating them, she would dump them as though they were her disposable toys. Love had no meaning to Aiko. She only dated for the sake of the thrill. In relationships, there would always be a winner and a loser.

Aiko liked being the winner.

* * *

**Author's Note**

So, instead of writing a third chapter for this story, I decided to rewrite this chapter instead to introduce my second OC. What do you guys think of Aiko? Don't worry, she's a nice girl. She's just mean to guys, that's all. Teeheehee.

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Next chapter will hopefully be up next week, depending on several factors.

Please do leave a review and tell me what you think about the story so far. I'll **greatly** appreciate it! I'm happy to take any criticism and advice.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own "The Prince of Tennis" and any of the characters, except for the OCs.


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